Description
Last time we observed that in order to have a ministry that has a balance of the fivefold giftings, our values, as well as our culture—or how we do ministry—will likely also have to change. In this episode we will look at how important the wineskin is in order to fulfill the mission of the Church—this is the how of implementing the fivefold ministry. With the reality of our existing structures, what would need to change in order to see the fivefold ministry functioning in our church?
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Video Script
Episode 13: Balance for Mission
Last time we observed that in order to have a ministry that has a balance of the fivefold giftings, our values, as well as our culture—or how we do ministry—will likely also have to change. In this episode we will look at how important the wineskin is in order to fulfill the mission of the Church—this is the how of implementing the fivefold ministry. With the reality of our existing structures, what would need to change in order to see the fivefold ministry functioning in our church?
Losing the Mission
I have been making the point that each of the equipping gifts from Ephesians 4 does not necessary reflect a position or even have a definitive leadership role. I am not advocating that the solution is to now go around calling people “Apostle” or “Prophet” – or for that matter “Pastor.” These fivefold gifts have a specific function. They have been given to the Body of Christ so that each member will be equipped to do the work of the ministry. Ministry is not something for just leaders, while the rest of us watch, as a believer, we all are ministers. For those using the notes, this episode will be based on pages 47-50.
Often, however, those serving the Body with one or more of these functions, provides them some sphere of leadership in the Body. Again it is important to be reminded that what we mean by leadership in the Body is more about serving others than being served. Jesus is our model. It is not about position and power. With that foundation let me make few comments regarding leadership and the fivefold gifts. For good or bad, history indicates that most, if not all, movements are started by a strong charismatic leader. Someone whose values and assumptions have a huge impact on the culture of a group that can last for generations.
Yet for the movement to grow beyond the founder stage, these values must be passed on to others in the organization and become part of the life of the community. If this does not happen, the movement and resultant organization will not survive past this initial stage. While the organization may continue to exist , it will never truly fulfill its mission or purpose. Death of a movement or organization does not mean that it will necessarily close its doors, but rather that it will no longer fulfill its reason to exist. You might still see the lights on through the window.
As we have seen, the fivefold ministry of Jesus—our founder—should be reflected in the values and culture in the movement that he initiated. While we know that the universal eternal Church (remember, large “C”) will not end, there is a danger for local expressions of this movement – as in the local church—to lose its way. Within less than one hundred years after Paul founded and wrote to the church in Ephesus, it was in decline, and if you visit the ancient city today there is not much left. What happened? They definitely had a good founder in Paul. Well there were many factors, but for our purposes here, let’s look at the leadership dynamic.
Hirsch makes the case from history that a man like John Wesley functioned in several of these fivefold gifts. He was apostolic and founded a movement, prophetic in that he spoke to the social issues of his day, and travelled tirelessly on horseback to preach the good news. Though not as strong in the pastoral gift, he did believe in the importance of the church and its mission, designing a system to care for the poor. While teaching was not as prominent, he designed a discipleship system—one of the first modern small group movements—and his teaching remains with us until this day. Of course, this became known as the “methodical” or “Methodist” way.
Is it possible for churches who suppress the first three equipping functions (apostolic, prophetic and evangelistic), to continue to grow over the long haul? Or is it inevitable that, like many previous church movements, they will cease to fulfill the ultimate purpose of the Church and eventually have to close their doors? “Closing the doors” can take some time depending upon how much momentum they began with—from weeks to decades. Typically the organization or church just drifts and can even become a completely different type of organization. Harvard and Yale come to mind as example of this “missiondrift.” No one would confuse them today with a ministerial training college, for which they were first formed.
In the case of Wesley, we see a strong leader who started a movement which was based upon his strong values and vision. Certain activities and behaviors were then developed—a Methodist culture—that reinforced these. Over time, the form, or way they did things, began to solidify and become entrenched. Actually, the more successful a group is the more likely that this will happen. Inflexible wineskins always make it difficult to contain the new wine. As with all organizations, if the vision is not revisited, and corresponding new structures developed, all that is left is the old structures. Regardless of how vibrant they once were or how grounded they were on good values, if constant renewal does not take place a movement no longer fulfills its purpose and may even cease to exist completely.
It’s important to remember that all denominations and churches once started as a vibrant movement. It would seem that the apostolic function and gifting is essential in initiating new movements. Remember, I am using this term as a function not necessarily as an office or position. While this apostolic function is obvious in pioneering new mission endeavors, I would suggest that it may also have a role in established denominations and churches if these ministries are going to remain vibrant and healthy over the long haul. Facilitating the functioning of this gift, maintains a focus on vision and mission rather than reverting to the natural life cycle of merely focussing on maintenance and control.
As Snyder points out in his classic book, The Problem with Wineskins, “. . . the church was born without priesthood, sacrifice or tabernacle because the Church and Christ together were all three.” The foundational apostolic function should serve the Body by keeping the “sending” function of the church foremost and continually pioneering new areas for the Gospel. It also has a role to play in keeping the Church true to apostolic teaching. Those with apostolic giftings are not just visionaries and dreamers, they also should be involved in helping others apply corrective theology and cultivating biblical leadership.
What are the challenges or obstacles in implementing a fivefold balanced ministry approach in your church/organization?
Balance in Ministry
The reality seems to be that most churches, or organizations, tend to have one or two of the fivefold functions that are dominant. This is often the result of a leader, or leaders, who have a similar ministry emphasis, based on their gifting. Certain gifts become valued over others. For example, groups that are always starting new works, forging ahead breaking old wineskins (if they need breaking or not!), likely have a strong apostolic focus. A culture develops that prides itself on constant innovation and change. But this can lead to the organization being task driven, demanding, and usually relationally unhealthy. There are usually “bodies” laying in the ditch on either side of the road as they have been run over in the name of progress.
On the other hand, those with a strong prophetic focus speak the truth and emphasize social justice, unfortunately sometimes they can be rather tone deaf in hearing others. There is often passionate worship and prayer and focus on spiritual warfare. Yet if this is the only focus, it can lead to a group that is hypercritical, judgemental, and a culture that lacks grace and mercy. They usually have a sense that they are the only “right” ones, the last bastion of truth.
Groups dominated by the evangelistic function focus on going to those who don’t know Jesus and a culture can develop that equates true spirituality with evangelism and telling others about the Good News. Sharing the Gospel is vital to the mission of the Church, but these groups can feel like motivation sessions and can have a reliance on charismatic types of leaders. This usually leads to a certain shallowness, as taking the time to go deep into the Word is seen as a “waste” of time in light of the great task ahead. This can then lead to a church that is aggressive and opinionated.
Churches led by leaders who are strong pastoral shepherds are usually stable and relationally healthy. They are characterized by people loving each other and caring for one another. Spirituality is equated with relational health and community. While this is a very comfortable place, it can lead to an ingrown culture that rejects all change, and is no longer willing to take any risks. Ironically, it is this lack of risk, that eventually leads to unhealthy relationships that are so valued. Overprotection, overly cautious, and codependent, these churches can cease to fulfill the ultimate purpose of the Church.
Churches with only a strong teaching function are similar to those with only a strong pastoral function, in that they tend to be stable places where people are growing and committed to discipleship. Which is great, however, this can lead to becoming overly intellectual, dominated by right doctrine at the price of right living. This can also result in controlling others and a focus on petty doctrines. Spirituality becomes more about acquiring biblical facts and knowledge than living these out in everyday life. All that is a nice way of saying this emphasis out of balance can lead to pride.
Okay this may be a bit of an oversimplification, but hopefully you see my point for the need of balance in our ministries. And what keeps the balance is an appreciation of each of the fivefold ministry functions.
Are there any of these imbalances in your ministry? What changes would be helpful? Our Assessment questions can help you discover not only your gifts but how to bring a balance in your ministry.
Old Patterns
As our church or organization plateaus in growth, or encounters a crisis, we usually respond according to our strengths, and these are typically grounded in our gifts. As the saying goes, “If the only tool you have is a hammer, then every problem starts to looks like a nail.” It is just natural that we use our primary strength or gift to “fix” the situation. In attempting to bring about change in our churches or organizations we typically see problems or obstacles as originating from our inability to function more effectively in our primary gift.
So in a crisis, those with a teaching emphasis will teach even more and deeper; those with pastoral giftings will care even more deeply for people and attempt to protect them even more; those with apostolic emphasis will seek to start new things and bring even more change; and those with a prophetic leaning will see the solution to the crisis as needing more intense prayer, fasting, and perhaps even calling out the “sin in the camp.” Let me suggest another approach. Instead of looking to our inherent strengths, the solution may actually be found in returning to a more balanced integration of the fivefold functions, so that the team can identify what gifts, or functions, are needed to actually address the crisis.
Now I get it, we are all more comfortable with certain kinds of ministries, not because they necessarily meet the need most effectively, but because that is using our own gift is within own comfort zone. We all have certain values based upon our theology and experiences and so our ministry programs are designed around these gifts, rather than utilizing all of the equipping functions within a fivefold approach. Again, at the risk of oversimplification, let me explain this approach from history.
The western Church model that originated in Europe has generally been the Bishop-Priest-Deacon one, or perhaps the more simplified Pastor/Teacher model, while the Reformed tradition followed a Preacher/Elder model. As we discussed last episode, structures that become institutionalized tend to become inward, rather than outward, focussed. The Eastern Church was also not exempt from this. Since the Reformation, and the reforms and revivals over the last few hundred years, the focus has seldom been on reforming ministry values or wineskins. The result has been that many once vibrant movements either became rigid and part of the institutionalized church, or ceased to exist altogether.
What I am suggesting is that in order to maintain a healthy movement, we consider a return to a balanced expression of the fivefold ministry functions. To do this, I think we would all have to become more intentional in identifying and developing teams that have a balance of these fivefold functions. Rather than just focussing on offices and positions—you know, giving people the title of “apostle,” or “prophet,” or dare I say “pastor” – instead we focus on creating a culture based on Kingdom principles and initiate ministry programs that allow all of the equipping gifts to function in the Body.
Has your ministry become reliant on certain patterns of ministry or only focusing on certain gifts to the exclusion of others? How could this be changed?
In our final episodes together I will provide you with a few tools to help you evaluate your current ministry programs and steps that may be helpful in bringing about the necessary change. If you’ve studied some of our other MCNet materials, you have already been introduced to our “Ministry Flow Chart” and “Organizational Life Cycle.” But for this series I have adapted these to show how they can be specifically applied to the fivefold ministries. It’s going to be good and so I am looking forward to having you join me.